#lbpcphotomastery

[lbpcphotomastery-blog]

Introduction

Welcome to LBPCPhotoMastery.

In this group, we aim to provide a mentoring service for LBPC members, where experienced and knowledgable members in a particular area can help and support other members.

Whether you are new to the club, club photography or just beginning your photography journey or an experienced photographer we can help each other grow as individual photographers and help improve our club.

As a member please take part as often as possible in posting and commenting on each other photographs, answering members questions to help and encourage us all to improve.

Our aims are:

Help each other learn and improve.

Give and receive critique and honest feedback on your images with recommendations and instructions on what areas to work on.

Get quick answers to photography questions that have had you stumped until now.

You simply want to improve your processing in general but you don't know where to start.

You don't speak fluent Photoshop, Lightroom, Photoshop Elements, Affinity Photo, etc and would like help getting the fundamentals and beyond.

You've been stuck on Auto mode and are yet to really understand aperture, shutter speeds and ISO.

Get simplified explanations of the technical side of photography, as it relates specifically to your situation.

Group Rules

Membership is invitation only.

Only fully paid up members of Leighton Buzzard Photographic Club can join and post images, along with any honorary members and lifetime members so awarded by the committee of the club.

Persons who have not renewed/continued their membership with Leighton Buzzard Photographic Club can be asked to leave the group at any time thereafter, or be allowed to remain on as an honorary member at the discretion of the administrators.

Under no circumstances, should members post any pornographic images or any other subject matter that will lead the author to civil prosecution. We would like to keep this group open to all ages.

Artistic nudes are allowed, as per the above criteria, but no genitalia to be included in the shot.

Any complaints about images posted in the group should be directed to a moderator or the Administrators. Complaints upheld will mean that the image will be removed and the person posting the image will face a possible life ban from the group depending on the severity of the offence caused.

As a member please take part as often as possible in posting and commenting on each other photographs to help and encourage us all to improve.

[paulneedham-blog]

Introduction

For me, my journey into better photography started many years ago by wanting to get better family and holiday photos. This became more important when I got married and we had our first child. I  was already fed up of the myriad of photos (mine and others) which were blurred, out of focus, people with things poking out of their heads, heads cut off etc etc. I could go on but I'm sure you get the point.

Now don't get me wrong, these photographs are priceless and this was brought home recently when I started to digitize some old photos. But I am talking about photos we might call happy snaps, memories or snapshots. Whatever term we use to describe them, we all take them, those quick photographs we take of family and friends, important life moments like you baby's first step, places and events. In essence, those things that we want to remember.

In those first years we where also broke, we couldn't afford the expense of professional family portraits. So I had to resort to DIY. I got my first SLR, Canon EOS 300. Bought lots of books on the fundamentals of photography and started to get hooked. I believe I did start to get better and create better family and holiday photos. It also (and still does) drive my wife and kids mad. Because I'll stop, pause, think, compose and then shoot. So instead of taking 1-2 seconds, I might take 30 seconds or sin of sins a minute or two. And as my kids tell me that's too long and boring.

Back then it was film, expensive (relative to income), slow (shoot the roll of film, send it off to Trueprint, wait weeks to get that pack of 6x4's back).  

In 2015, I upgraded to an Olympus OMD EM-10 with just the kit lenses, choosing to go mirrorless for the first time. And joined my local camera club.

I currently use an Olympus OMD EM-5 Mkii, with m.Zuiko 40-150 mm F2.8 Pro, m.Zuiko 14-42mm F2.8 Pro and my original pancake kit lens m.Zuiko 14-42mm F3.5-5.6.